Swedish producer Name The Pet has been in the game for a while now, with two albums behind her, and is now working her way towards her third. Än is out tomorrow, and it marks a sonic departure from the more conventionally electro-pop sound she explored on her previous records, instead setting her music sights on smooth, swaying modernist pop. A perfect example of this new style is her new single Radion Lovar Regn, which we’re delighted to premiere for you here today.
Radion Lovar Regn (‘The Radio Promises Rain’) is a fusion of musical DNAs, with its skittering beat taken from UK garage, mixing with a flash of strings and Name The Pet‘s distilled, shimmering vocal for a pop song that cracks the borders of several genres to create something new and beautiful. Check it out, along with an interview from Name The Pet below.
So, describe your new record Än for us.
Än is a pop album in Swedish, inspired by UK garage and early Sade. The lyrics on the album come from an intense personal journey during the past year, where I’ve analysed my own emotional patterns and ideas about life. The production process however has almost only been playful and fun. I’ve also gone from producing everything on my own to working with Linn Fijal as a co-producer on Än which has been amazing, both for my sound and my creative process.
At lot of the background to this record has been your focus on collaboration between female producers, both with your collective ⌘J and your work with Linn Fijal on this album. How important has that been to the gestation of Än?
It’s been important in so many ways. Linn is such an amazing engineer, working with her really gave me the confidence to not overwork my productions, which is something I’ve been struggling with in the past years. It’s also been so inspiring to see the different creative processes existing in the female producer community of Stockholm. When I collaborated with some of the women on their music, I noticed that they had a lightness in how they approached their own material which I’ve been challenging myself to adapt when making Än.
What was it that inspired the sound of the record, the combination of Swedish lyrics with that UK dance sound?
I think I’ve just started doing whatever’s natural for me without over-analysing the creative process. Dance music from the UK was a big part of why I got into music production back in the days, and I still always get so inspired when I go to London. With Än I’ve just embraced whatever comes to me easiest, writing in Swedish is really all about that too.
Tell us a little about Radion Lovar Regn.
I produced the beat to this song sitting in a cafe in Stoke Newington Rd, London. I wanted to capture the feeling I get when a car passes with a nice beat playing through the rolled down car window. It’s the best thing when the beautiful city sounds become part of the orchestra.
Name The Pet’s album Än is out on April 5